unbox

verb

"unbox" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“unbox” is uncommon English (frequency #94,381 among 1,433 “U” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#94,381
frequency rank, English
1,433
“U” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To remove from a box.

Corpus desk

Index EN-unbox · unbox · English

unbox · rank #94,381 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #94,381
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,433
  • PHOTO-FINISH unction

Nearest frequency peer: unction (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “unbox”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “unbox” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for unbox
PropertyValue
Headwordunbox
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters5
Frequency rank#94,381
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “unbox” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).unboxfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “unction” (#94,382), “undeliverable” (#94,383), “understudied” (#94,384). Among 1,433 “U” headwords, “unbox” is #94,381. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

unbox is uncommon English at frequency #94,381 among 1,433 “U” headwords, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for unbox, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From un- + box. The correct English form is unbox, spelled U-N-B-O-X.

Definition

  1. 1
    To remove from a box.
  2. 2
    To retrieve (a value of a primitive type) from the object in which it is boxed.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how unbox appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The booksellers' tasks were to unbox, shelve, and handle cash.
  2. Clips in which children’s toys are unboxed are some of the most popular videos on YouTube.

Etymology

From un- + box.

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "unbox"?
"unbox" is spelled U-N-B-O-X.
What does "unbox" mean?
As a verb, "unbox" means: To remove from a box.
What is the origin of the word "unbox"?
From un- + box. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "unbox", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list